The Indian men’s football team was knocked out of the second round of the FIFA World Cup 2026 qualifiers after a 2-1 loss to reigning Asian champions Qatar with a controversial goal in final Group A match at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium in Doha, Qatar on Tuesday.
India finished third in Group A with just one win in six games and failed to progress to the third round. Meanwhile Kuwait defeated Afghanistan 1-0 and joined Qatar to progress to the third round of the qualifiers. India will now proceed to the AFC Asian Cup 2027 Third Round qualification.
In a must win match, Blue Tigers took the lead in 37′ courtesy Lallianzuala Chhangte. However, Qatar came back in the second half through Youssef Ayman Farahat (73’) and Ahmed Alrawi (85’).
Youssef Ayman Farahat scored the goal from point-blank range, however in replay it was clearly visible that the ball had already gone out of play before the goal was scored and Indian players rightly protested the decision, but the referee gifted Qatar the goal.
India: Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, Anwar Ali, Rahul Bheke, Mehtab Singh; Jay Gupta, Suresh Wangjam, Jeakson Singh, Brandon Fernandes, Lallianzuala Chhangte, Rahim Ali, Manvir Singh
Picture Courtesy: AIFF Media
